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4 Biggest Changes Coming to Costco in 2026 that Members Will Love

We’re not the only ones setting New Year’s resolutions this month. As people around the world usher in 2026 with bold proclamations about eating better or being nicer to their co-workers, businesses are setting their own goals. Costco may not be committing itself to a new workout regimen or daily affirmations, but it does have a plan in place for growth. And that means making some big changes that Costco members will want to know about.

We’ve seen this movie before, right? Every year, Costco switches things up, at least a little bit. Look at January 2025, when it eliminated coffee grinders from warehouses. Or last summer, when it switched the food court soda options from Pepsi to Coca-Cola. It’s these little things (or big ones, depending on your perspective) that keep Cosco evolving—whether you agree with the swaps or not. Keep reading, and let’s see what Costco HQ has in store for the rest of 2026.

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Costco will open new stores this year

More Costcos? Yes, please! A goal for just about every retailer on the planet is expansion, and Costco is no exception. During the warehouse club’s fourth-quarter earnings call in September 2025, CEO Ron Vachris announced the opening of 35 new Costco locations by the end of 2026. This will bring the total number of stores to 649.

First up: a planned opening for a West Roseville, California, location in January 2026. That will be followed by three anticipated openings in March 2026 in Liberty Hill, Texas; Forney, Texas; and South St. George, Utah.

Costco will launch its first stand-alone gas station

For many members, access to Costco’s warehouse-adjacent gas stations practically pays for the club membership itself. Compared with other fueling stations, the prices per gallon are just that low. And in June 2025, Reader’s Digest reported that Costco is building its first stand-alone gas station for members in Mission Viejo, California, which is set to open sometime in spring 2026.

Will there be more? Costco hasn’t announced additional stand-alone gas stations yet—it has a policy of not commenting officially on locations opening more than three months in the future. However, it would be shocking if Costco didn’t have more stand-alone refueling locations in the pipeline.

Costco will offer increased prescription price transparency

Costco Pharmacy is teaming up with Navitus, a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM). (Pharmacy benefit managers are the middlemen working with insurance companies, pharmacies and drug manufacturers.) Through this partnership, the store will offer a cost-plus pricing model that shows exactly what a medication costs, plus a straightforward markup—no confusing rebates or hidden fees. For Navitus clients, that means more transparency, more predictable pricing and often lower out-of-pocket costs when filling prescriptions at Costco, whether in-store or by mail.

It positions Costco Pharmacy as a go-to option for people seeking clarity and fairness in health care spending, not just groceries. The partnership also brings more members into Costco’s ecosystem, giving them another reason to rely on Costco for everyday essentials, including prescriptions.

“Costco has long supported the Navitus PBM model and its commitment to transparency,” Richard Stephens, senior vice president of Costco Pharmacy, said in a press release. “We are proud to be their first network pharmacy partner to deliver to their clients highly competitive, fully auditable drug costs of prescription medications,” he added. “We feel this level of transparency is a positive step to give payers a tool to effectively manage drug spending.”

Costco will add membership-card scanners to food courts

Once upon a time, you could purchase Costco food court items without a membership, as many sit outside the warehouse doors. But over the past couple of years, some Costco food-court patrons started seeing something new: membership-card scanners. Now, the retailer wants to make sure that $1.50 hot dog combo is exclusive to members, so Costco is rolling out more of these scanners across the U.S.

People are talking! “We’ve been scanning Costco memberships in local SoCal warehouses for a few years now, probably since most of our food courts are outdoors,” said a Redditor replying to a thread on the topic. “Looks like it may finally be rolling out nationwide?”

One perk of this change is that executive members can earn rewards on their food-court goodies, just like they do on groceries and other Costco purchases. Redditors from California have said the process is super easy—you just scan your card before placing your order at the terminal. They also say the scanners prevent their Costco food courts from becoming overcrowded; before, they were overrun with non-members. Now that’s a silver lining!

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Sources:

  • Costco: “New Locations”
  • Yahoo Finance: “Costco Q4 FY2025 earnings call transcript”
  • Costco: “Costco Wholesale 1st Quarter FY 26 Supplemental Information”
  • Yahoo Finance: “Costco Q2 FY2025 earnings call transcript”
  • Reddit: “Membership ID Scanners coming soon to a Costco Food Court near you!”
  • Navitus: “Navitus Partners with Costco Pharmacy to Advance Drug Price Transparency”

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The post 4 Biggest Changes Coming to Costco in 2026 that Members Will Love appeared first on Reader's Digest.



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